The safe disposal of sharp, contaminated medical instruments is a major health care problem. Numerous infectious diseases can be transmitted to other persons through contact with the contaminated instruments during the disposal process. Hypodermic needles, trocars and other instruments that retain body tissue and fluids therein are particularly dangerous and are known to transmit such diseases as the AIDS virus, hepatitis, syphilis and tuberculosis. Disposing of the used medical instruments within the operating rooms, patient rooms and laboratories is a task that exposes the doctors, nurses and other hospital employees and visitors to inadvertent injuries and exposure to disease. Injuries frequently have occurred while trying to cap hypodermic needles in preparation for their transport and disposal through incineration or other means. Current procedures require the collection and removal of the dangerous "sharps" to another site for decontamination, encapsulation or other protective measures. This means that the unprotected medical instruments remain on the "hospital floors" while awaiting collection and transport permitting unauthorized retrieval of such equipment for improper uses. The greater the handling of the unprotected "sharps", the greater the opportunity for injury and infection.
Two patents issued to Honeycutt, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,816,307 and 4,900,500 and a patent issued to Donovan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,845,923 each disclose methods for encasing "sharps" in containers containing resins which harden and encapsulate the instruments. The processes identified in these patents are still slow reacting, do not provide a capsule that is resistent to crushing and in some cases require handling of chemicals by the staff at the point of use. It is clear that a device that accepts the instruments immediately after use and quickly encases the sharp portions of the instruments upon the simple insertion of the instrument into an individual container is needed.